Tag: coronavirus
Inflatable costume could be behind Covid outbreak at California hospital
A hospital in California is facing a coronavirus outbreak among its staff that might be tied to an inflatable costume worn on Christmas to cheer up patients.
At least 43 staff members tested positive for the virus between Dec. 27 and New Year’s Day, according to a statement from Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center on Saturday. The hospital’s emergency department has been deep-cleaned, and all infected staff members are isolating.
The hospital is looking into whether the fan on an “air-powered costume” could have spread droplets after a staff member briefly wore it in the emergency department on Christmas Day.
“Any exposure, if it occurred, would have been completely innocent, and quite accidental, as the individual had no COVID symptoms and only sought to lift the spirits of those around them during what is a very stressful time,” the hospital said.
Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center will no longer allow such costumes in its facility, the statement said.
Emergency department employees at Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center who were able to get a Covid-19 vaccine were only given their first inoculation days prior to Christmas Day and would not have reached immunity by the time of the incident.
None would have had their second booster shot by Christmas Day.
“During this period, even as vaccine is beginning to be provided in our communities, it is crucial that everyone continue to protect themselves and each other by continuing to use masks, hand washing, avoid gatherings, and practice social distancing,” the hospital said.
None of the staff members who tested positive will return to work, though the hospital said it has been engaging additional staff as part of its preparations.
California hospitals have been overwhelmed with casesin recent weeks amid a new surge of the virus, which brought record numbers of daily deaths and hospitalizations.
The state’s Bay Area has only 5.1 percent availability in its intensive care units. Southern California is beset with hospitalizations, with no available beds in many of its hospitals as staff create makeshift units in gift shops or pediatric wards.
California has recorded 2,345,909 confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 26,000 deaths, according to numbers the state’s public health department released Saturday.
original story here https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/inflatable-costume-could-be-behind-covid-outbreak-california-hospital-n1252685
Georgia camp hit with coronavirus outbreak didn’t require masks
Test results were available for 344 people and 260 of them — about three-quarters — were positive.
A Georgia overnight camp hit by a coronavirus outbreak took many precautions but didn’t make campers wear masks or have proper ventilation in buildings, according to a government report released Friday.
The camp followed disinfecting rules and required staff to wear masks, but campers didn’t have to wear face coverings. Health officials said “relatively large” groups of kids slept in the same cabin where they regularly sang and cheered, likely leading to spread.
Nearly 600 people were at the overnight camp, which was not named in the report by Georgia health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Media outlets reported a large outbreak occurred at the time at a YMCA camp at Lake Burton in Rabun County, near the state’s northern border with North Carolina.
Campers ranged in age from 6 to 19, and many of the staffers were teenagers. Cabins had between 16 to 26 people. The report said this was “relatively large” but doesn’t clearly say if it was too many. Health investigators did fault the camp for not opening enough windows and doors to increase circulation in buildings.
The report said a teenage staff member developed chills on the evening of June 22 and left the camp the following day.
The camp began sending campers home two days later when the staffer got a positive test result for coronavirus. The camp notified state health officials and closed the camp on June 27.
Test results were available for 344 people and 260 of them – about three-quarters – were positive.
The percentage of campers infected was higher among younger kids than older kids, the report found. It also was higher in kids who were at the camp for longer periods of time.
Officials recorded information about symptoms for only 136 kids. Of those, 100 reported symptoms – mostly fever, headache and sore throat.
Starbucks customer who wouldn’t wear mask wants half of $100K donated to San Diego barista
A woman says she is entitled to half of the $100,000 donated to a Starbucks barista in San Diego who refused to serve her because she wasn’t wearing a mask.
A woman says she is entitled to half of the $100,000 donated to a Starbucks barista in San Diego who refused to serve her because she wasn’t wearing a mask.
In June, Amber Lynn Gilles posted a picture of the barista, Lenin Gutierrez, on Facebook and accused him of discrimination for not wearing a mask.
Gilles claims to have a medical exemption.
“Meet lenen from Starbucks who refused to serve me cause I’m not wearing a mask. Next time I will wait for cops and bring a medical exemption,” Gilles’ post read.
An Orange County man saw the post, felt bad for Lenin and set up a GoFundMe page for him.
The page ended up generating more than $100,000 in donations.
Now, according to ABC7’s sister station in San Diego, the woman who made the original negative post claims she is entitled to half the money.
She has started her own GoFundMe page to raise money for a lawyer to try and get it.
Article via ABC7
U.S.-China Feud Over Coronavirus Erupts at World Health Assembly
China’s president pledged $2 billion to fight the virus, a move the United States criticized as an effort to head off scrutiny of its handling of the pandemic.
Article via NYTimes
A meeting of the World Health Organization that was supposed to chart a path for the world to combat the coronavirus pandemic instead on Monday turned into a showcase for the escalating tensions between China and the United States over the virus.
President Xi Jinping of China announced at the start of the forum that Beijing would donate $2 billion toward fighting the coronavirus and dispatch doctors and medical supplies to Africa and other countries in the developing world.
The contribution, to be spent over two years, amounts to more than twice what the United States had been giving the global health agency before President Trump cut off American funding last month, and it could catapult China to the forefront of international efforts to contain a disease that has claimed at least 315,000 lives.
But it was also seen — particularly by American officials — as an attempt by China to forestall closer scrutiny of whether it hid information about the outbreak to the world.
Mr. Xi made his announcement by videoconference to the World Health Assembly, an annual decision-making meeting of the W.H.O. that is being conducted virtually this year because of safety considerations during the pandemic. Mr. Trump declined to address the two-day gathering, providing the Chinese president an opening to be one of the first world leaders to address the 194 member states.
“In China, after making painstaking efforts and sacrifice, we have turned the tide on the virus and protected lives,” Mr. Xi said. “We have done everything in our power to support and assist countries in need.”
Late Monday, Mr. Trump responded in a scathing letter in which he accused the W.H.O. of an “alarming” dependence on China. In the letter, addressed to the W.H.O.’s director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and posted on Twitter at 10:55 p.m., the president said, “It is clear the repeated missteps by you and your organization in responding to the pandemic have been extremely costly for the world.”
The four-page letter details Mr. Trump’s grievances against China and the W.H.O. over the pandemic and ends with a threat to permanently pull U.S. funding and revoke American membership in the organization if it does not “commit to substantive improvements within the next 30 days.”
Though the president did not specify the changes he was seeking, he said that “the only way forward for the World Health Organization is if it can actually demonstrate independence from China.”
Earlier, Trump administration officials denounced China’s aid announcement as an attempt to influence the W.H.O., which is facing pressure from member states to investigate whether it was complicit in Beijing’s lack of transparency in the early days of the outbreak in Wuhan.
China’s “commitment of $2 billion is a token to distract from calls from a growing number of nations demanding accountability for the Chinese government’s failure to meet its obligations under international health regulations to tell the truth and warn the world of what was coming,” John Ullyot, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said in a statement. “As the source of the outbreak, China has a special responsibility to pay more and to give more.”
Other world leaders, in their remarks to the assembly, criticized the lack of unity in fighting the pandemic and, without naming any one country, urged nations to set aside their differences.
“No country can solve this problem alone,” Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany said. “We must work together.”
Dr. Tedros nodded to criticism of the organization’s own handling of the early weeks of the outbreak, saying the agency would review “lessons learned” about its global response.
But he did not address Mr. Trump’s insistence that the health agency investigate allegations widely dismissed by scientists that the coronavirus originated in a lab in China. Mr. Xi in his speech called for any examination to take place after the health crisis had subsided.
In recent weeks, Chinese leaders and citizens have become increasingly aware of the international criticism and open hostility over China’s initial handling of the outbreak. Top American officials have been scathing, but European leaders have also spoken of mysteries surrounding the outbreak in China that needed to be addressed.
China’s aggressive diplomacy and international anger over exports of Chinese-made medical equipment that turned out to be shoddy have also contributed to the rising tensions.
About 100 nations have called for an independent investigation into the origins of the pandemic.
Against that backdrop, and with the imminent start of the annual National People’s Congress in Beijing on Friday, Mr. Xi’s move appeared to be an effort to win over international support and calm the public anxieties in China.
“Certainly this is a very tricky moment for Xi,” said Dali L. Yang, a political scientist at the University of Chicago. “Clearly he doesn’t want this really to be hanging above him, given how many countries are engaged and have asked for an investigation into the origins of the virus.”
Mr. Trump’s retreat from the global stage has created openings for China, which has been seeking to reshape multilateral institutions long dominated by Washington.
Ryan Hass, a China scholar at the Brookings Institution, said a familiar pattern had emerged. “Whenever Trump withdraws the U.S. from international leadership, Xi announces that China will step forward,” said Mr. Hass, who was a senior Asia director on President Barack Obama’s National Security Council. “Xi has been ruthlessly opportunistic about seeking to exploit America’s withdrawal from global leadership for China’s advantage.”
Washington’s weak diplomatic hand was apparent on Monday when its efforts to lead a coalition of countries seeking to win Taiwan admission to the assembly as an observer failed. The self-governed island, which Beijing claims as its own territory, had observer status until 2016. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other top American officials had recently called on the W.H.O. and its members to re-establish Taiwan’s admission over Beijing’s objections.
Mr. Trump’s fury at the W.H.O., and his decision last month to freeze financial contributions to the group in the middle of a global pandemic, came as critics pointed to his own administration’s slow and bungled response to a pandemic that has infected nearly 1.5 million people in the United States and killed nearly 90,000.
To many of the president’s supporters, the W.H.O. and other international organizations are to blame for lost jobs, low wages and economic uncertainty in the United States. But Mr. Trump will need to convince a broad part of the electorate that he was not responsible for the deaths and massive economic calamity caused by the virus. Casting the W.H.O. and the Chinese government as enemies could be an effective way, at least in the eyes of his supporters, for Mr. Trump to blunt fierce criticism from Democrats over his failures on the pandemic.
“Why is it that China, for decades, and with a population much bigger than ours, is paying a tiny fraction of $’s to The World Health Organization, The United Nations and, worst of all, The World Trade Organization, where they are considered a so-called ‘developing country’ and are therefore given massive advantages over The United States, and everyone else?” Mr. Trump tweeted over the weekend.
Beijing contributed a total of $86 million to the W.H.O. in 2018 and 2019, indeed much less than Washington’s $893 million contribution over those two years.
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State orders Tacoma apartment complex to stop eviction notices amid coronavirus crisis
These apartments are trash anyway. It looks nice on the outside but in the inside it’s trash I was so desperate this past summer I was going to move there anyway I’m glad I didn’t
TACOMA, Wash. — A Tacoma apartment complex has been ordered by the Washington Office Attorney General’s Office to cease and desist eviction notices.
Boulders at Puget Sound at 2602 Westridge Ave. W. has been sending emails, calling and posting notices to doors stating that residents need to pay rent or vacate despite Gov. Jay Inslee’s moratorium that temporarily prohibited landlords from evicting renters because they cannot pay rent until April 17.
The Attorney General’s Office provided The News Tribune with a copy of the letter sent Monday to Boulders at Puget Sound and the parent company, JRK Holding Partners.
The letter states Boulders at Puget Sound violated the eviction order by serving notices and taking actions in the eviction process with 14-day pay-or-vacate notices.
The letter also said JRK Property Holdings placed “unfair and deceptive pressure on tenants to pay rent” by telling residents to pay rent as quickly as possible to allow the property company “to support your less fortunate neighbors who are directly battling COVID-19.”
The apartment complex referred all comment to JRK Holding Partners. The phone numbers provided and those listed on the company site are non-operable, and Boulders at Puget Sound did not provide another way to contact the corporation. An email was sent to the JRK Holding Partners’ general inquiries account, but there was no immediate response.
Boulders at Puget Sound is one of several landlords sending eviction notices, according to the Attorney General’s Office. As of Monday, the office had received 403 eviction complaints from renters and contacted 168 landlords over the complaints.
Crystal Martin, a resident for about a year and a half, said management at Boulders in Puget Sound has even called her job.
“We don’t have money to move,” Martin told The News Tribune. “They tried to reach out to me but tried to contact my job, not realizing that I answer the phone for my job. They refused to speak to me. They wanted to speak to my boss.”
Martin, her husband and their three children live in a $1,767 two-bedroom apartment. She is still employed, but it has been difficult to pay rent with only one income. Her husband, a disabled veteran wasn’t working before, but other family members who were helping the couple before can no longer help them out, Martin said. If they can’t pay rent, she is afraid her family will end up on the streets.
“They have given us this notice so when the eviction order is over, they can take action right away,” Martin said. “I’ve called 211 to find some help, and we were thinking about becoming homeless because having an eviction on your record makes it so hard to find another place to live.”
Natascha Jammes, her husband and daughter have lived at Boulders in Puget Sound for three years. They rent a one-bedroom apartment for $1,255. Jammes was laid off about a month ago from a children’s birthday company.
Jammes said there have been issues with management before but never like this.
“I can’t sleep. I’ve got butterflies in my stomach,” Jammes said. “I’ve even considered being homeless this summer and putting up a tent with my daughter and husband because it would be warm enough to live outside.”
In notices obtained by The News Tribune, the apartment complex told residents that unemployment benefits and $1,200 federal stimulus check are for paying necessities, like rent.
“These cash payments are being sent to you directly so that everyone can continue to pay for necessities such as rent and avoid running behind on these essential bills, which can hurt your credit and create serious financial problems for you in the future,” the notice said.
Neither Jammes nor Martin have received money from the government.
Jammes said the company’s tactics are leaving her feeling stress.
“They are calling, emailing us a harassing amount of times, reminding us how much is due and how important it is to pay and how they are not going to give us any leniency,” Jammes said. “They keep hinting that this is going to ruin our credit forever.”
The notice also said that those struggling to pay rent can reach out to the office to create a financial plan or payment options. Both Martin and Jammes said they reached out to the office multiple times, but the manager was never available or a payment plan cost around $300 to set up.
The state Attorney General’s Office has ordered the company to rescind all 14-day pay or vacate notices, notify residents that the apartment complex will comply with the eviction moratorium and provide proof of doing so.
Click here to read the story on thenewstribune.com.
How to clean a sponge so that it is free from germs and viruses
Janilyn Hutchings, a certified professional in food safety and a food scientist for StateFoodSafety, says about sponges: “If they’re dirty, they can spread germs to everything they touch, from dishes and utensils to the kitchen counter and appliances.”
Why you should clean a sponge regularly
Yeast, mold, bacteria: All sorts of germs can make your sponges smelly, or worse.
A 2017 study found that fecal coliform bacteria lurks in 44 percent of kitchens, often in sponges and dishcloths. This E. Coli bacteria can be harmless, but certain strains may cause diarrhea, cramps and vomiting. In fact, a study conducted in Japan found that kitchen sponges were second only to drain traps when it came to the highest levels of bacterial contamination in the house.
Your sponge might also harbor other types of bacteria like Staphylococcus aureus or Campylobacter, which can also cause diarrhea. You’re probably more than ready to clean that sponge now, right? Jennifer Quinlan, PhD, professor in Drexel University’s Department of Nutrition Sciences, says don’t wait.
“The general recommendation is to just do it daily,” Quinlan says.
Methods of cleaning sponges
The USDA’s ARS Food Technology and Safety Laboratory has found that two methods work to disinfect a kitchen sponge and make it safe to use again:
Dishwasher: If you run the dishwasher every night before you head off to bed, Quinlan suggests just tossing the kitchen sponge on the top shelf and turning on the dishwasher. The heat disinfects the sponge and your dishes at the same time.
Microwave: “You basically dampen it, you make sure it’s wet, put it in the microwave and you microwave it for a minute,” says Quinlan. “You’ll see steam coming off of it.” Again, the heat is the hero here. But this method isn’t foolproof, so check out this article on how to do it properly.
According to the USDA, these two methods are 99 percent effective in killing off bacteria present in sponges. “It’s really that simple,” says Quinlan.
The following are methods not recommended:
Hot soapy water: Hot tap water won’t be hot enough to get rid of the germs, according to Quinlan. You could boil water on the stove and soak your sponge in that, but only if you don’t have a microwave or dishwasher.
Bleach bath: Heat is more effective than bleach for this purpose, according to Quinlan. “It’s the heat that kills the pathogens,” says Quinlan. Plus, if you try to bleach your sponges, the bleach doesn’t always work its way through the entire sponge. And you risk leaving bleach behind and potentially getting onto food prep surfaces and food.
When to throw your sponge out
At some point, you should just throw the sponge away. Two weeks is a pretty good lifespan for a typical kitchen sponge, says Hutchings.
“Replacing it at least every two weeks will keep the bacteria from spreading and growing, making you sick if you use it,” she says. “You should also replace them if they smell funny and you can’t get rid of the odor, or if they start breaking apart.”
A 2017 study suggests that cleaning your kitchen sponges doesn’t really kill the bacteria as well as you’d think anyway. You might just be better off replacing your sponges each week than trying to clean them.
Via: https://lovelyti.com/?
Wendy Williams Asks Dr. Oz About Whether It’s Safe to Have Sex Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
“I don’t want anybody over here,” the talk show host said
Wendy Williams says she’s abstaining from sex during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
The talk show host shared an update with her fans on Monday, opening up about a segment from her appearance on Dr. Oz last week about her sex life that got cut from the episode due to a press conference about the coronavirus.
“When I went to Dr. Oz, one of the things I talked to him about, I was like, ‘Dr. Oz, what do single people, including me, do about sex?’ Because as much as a wanted woman as I am, I’m not thinking about that,” she said Monday. “I don’t want anybody over here. I think condoms are something random. You know, what about the sweat and the shower?”
Williams, 55, said that the show’s host, Mehmet Oz, told her that abstinence could be a good idea.
“He ended up saying, ‘You know what? Hold out. It’ll be over soon,’” she said.
The New York City Department of Health has issued guidelines on the subject of sex during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The department makes it clear that COVID-19 can spread “to people who are within about 6 feet of a person with COVID-19 when that person coughs or sneezes,” and that “the virus can spread through direct contact with their saliva or mucus.”
This means kissing is an easy way to spread the virus, and the health department recommends that individuals “avoid kissing anyone who is not part of your small circle of close contacts.”
The department suggested anyone who usually finds sex partners online to “consider taking a break from in-person dates.”
The department also said that “washing up before and after sex is more important than ever,” and recommends using condoms and skipping sex altogether if either person is not feeling well.
In her video posted on Monday, Williams also shared her concern that COVID-19 could be transferred by clothing.
“And then I asked him about, ‘Do clothes carry the [coronavirus]?’ I get in the elevator, I press with my elbow, I pull my sleeve down and press with the material,” she explained.
“Then, as far as clothing, he said, ‘Yes! The germs last for two hours.’ Two hours, darling do you realize when you get out of the subway or your Uber or whatever you’re doing outside, you come inside, you sit on your cloth couch with your clothing on — you’re transferring the stuff!” Williams said.
To keep clothing as clean and as safe as possible, the Centers for Disease Control recommends wearing disposable gloves when handling laundry that was used by a person who is sick.
The CDC also says that it’s important to try not to shake dirty laundry, as shaking the clothing could disperse the virus through the air.
“Launder items as appropriate in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions,” the CDC says. “If possible, launder items using the warmest appropriate water setting for the items and dry items completely. Dirty laundry from an ill person can be washed with other people’s items.”
It is also recommended to clean and disinfect laundry hampers and to use a disposable liner in hampers.
Article via People
NBC Meet The Press Full Broadcast March 22nd 2020
Folks are not taking this coronavirus seriously SMDH